Sheffield Forgemasters

Construction of Sheffield Forgemasters new 30,000 m2 Machine Shop

The new Machine Shop is a key feature of Sheffield Forgemasters’ £1.3 billion recapitalisation programme.

Having successfully carried out the advanced enabling works, McLaughlin & Harvey are now well into the main works project.

The project involves building a new 30,000 m2 (the size of 12 Olympic-sized swimming pools) Machine Shop at Ministry of Defence-owned Sheffield Forgemasters. Its height will be 32 metres.

Steelwork commenced in January 2026 with the final steel roof beam installed in July of the same year. The first of 11 overhead cranes, each spanning up to 35 metres, arrived on site in August 2026. Travelling all the way from northern Spain, the crane is one of two 150/40-tonne capacity cranes that will operate on our site. A further four 200/40-tonne service cranes, five 250/50-tonne cranes and a tandem lifting beam with a lifting capacity of up to 400 tonnes are scheduled for delivery by the end of the year.

The roof and cladding are on track to be completed by the end of the year.

The facility will house 24 new machines, including some of the world’s largest, most advanced, Vertical Turning Lathes.

The project also includes building a second 3,500 m2 building, with a state-of-the-art test-house facility and a dedicated training area, to transfer vital skills to the next generation of engineers.

Once complete the machining facility will deliver new levels of speed, accuracy and efficiency for the manufacture of large, highly complex, nuclear-grade components.

Located on a 16-acre plot at Weedon Street, the new facility will form one of the world’s most advanced large machining facilities, to support manufacture for the UK defence programmes.